Cold+Desert+-+Laura+Atuesta,+Nailah+Bell-Eaden,+Cynthia+Serpas+(4th+Period)

The cold desert is known to be found in Greenland, the Antarctic, and many other places in the northern hemisphere. They are usually in mountainous areas and can be described by having tons of snowfall, short summers, and rich soil. Their summers are below average warmth and they experience much rainfall during this time as well. ==here's what needs to be fixed about this project--this biome designation is confusing--when we say cold desert we are talking about Utah and the desert area in the Basin and Range area of the USA, your flora and fauna pics generally make sense but some of your overall ones don't fit very well. It's not a frozen wasteland like the pic above!==

Flora

 * Plants can vary from heights between 15 cm and 122 cm, depending upon the area. Most shed their leaves (deciduous) and have spiny leaves.
 * Ground cover such as lichens, are found in areas such as Torgerson Island, Antarctica and cover much of the ground, whereas in other areas the plants are found quite apart from each other.
 * Some examples of plants found in cold deserts include grasses, shadscale and camel’s thorn.



Fauna

 * The animal life of this biome include jack rabbits, kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice, grasshopper mice, and antelope ground squirrels.
 * Population density of these animals can range from 14-41 individuals per hectare.
 * All of the animals (except for the jack rabbits) are burrowers
 * This also applies to carnivores like the badger, kit fox, and coyote
 * Lizards do some burrowing and moving of soil
 * Deer are found only in the winter

__K angaroo Rats __
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">[[image:Kangaroo_Rat.jpg width="177" height="119" align="right"]]Common Names: Kangaroo rat, Desert Rat
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Genus: Dipodomys
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Species: deserti
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">usually grow to about 14 inches (38 cm) in length, including its tail
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">hair is a yellow buff color above and white below
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Their burrows are up to 4 1/2 feet (1.5 m) deep, with many passages which connect to food storage rooms and a nest chamber
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">spends most of its day underground sleeping, and comes out to feed at night when it is cooler
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">has a cheek pouch, which it can store food in for weeks while finding shelter
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">big, long, fluffy tail, which it uses for balance and steering its way.[[image:Jack_Rabbit.jpg width="128" height="188" align="right"]]

__<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> Jack Rabbits __
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Mammal
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Herbivore
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Average life span in the wild: 1 to 5 years
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Size: 2 ft (61 cm)
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Weight: 3 to 9 lbs (1.4 to 4 kg)
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">speedy animals capable of reaching 40 miles (64 kilometers) an hour
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Their powerful hind legs can propel them on leaps of more than ten feet (three meters)

<span style="color: #001b69; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 33px;">Seasonal Temperatures


 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">cold winters with snowfall and high overall rainfall throughout the winter
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">short, moist, and moderately warm summers with fairly long, cold winters
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">mean winter temperature is between -2 to 4° C
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">mean summer temperature is between 21-26° C.
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">never gets warm enough for plants to grow

<span style="color: #001b69; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 33px;">Seasonal Precipitation
<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: left;">
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Large amount of snowfall in winter (and sometimes in summer), plus a high average of rainfall (15-26 cm.)
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Short, wet moderately warm summers
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Mean average winter temperature -2 to 4ºC
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Mean average summer temperature 21-26º
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Heavy, relatively porous soil with a lot of silt and salt
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: center;">Good drainage to leach out most of the salt

<span style="color: #001b69; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 33px;">Human Impacts this section needs to be researched! For one thing, using fossil fuels does not destroy ozone, check your book.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Global warming is a huge impact that humans have on cold deserts. When we use fossil fuels, we are destroying the ozone layer. Thus, more light comes in and the cold deserts begin to melt.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Humans have also begun to mine in these deserts and because of this, the deserts can take a big downfall.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Hunting seals has also become popular throughout the years and the number of seals have been declining ever since the practice became popular.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Lastly, the trash that people dump into its waters maked the water polluted and less usable.

Corsi, Buff. "The Desert Biome." //University of California Museum of Paleontology//. California Academy of Science, 1 Jan. 2000. Web. 26 Jan. 2015. Huang, Adam. "Le Desert - Hot - Cold." //Adam and Adiel//. Weebly. Web. 26 Jan. 2015. Stetson, N. "Desert Biomes." //Blue Planet Biomes//. 1 Jan. 2000. Web. 26 Jan. 2015. "Cold Desert Ecosystem." //Wild Tracks//. WordPress, 1 Jan. 2013. Web. 26 Jan. 2015. //Wildflowers of the Northern Nevada Cold Desert//. Nevada Native Plant Society. 20-44. Print.